La vague parfaite sous l'œil de la caméra. Le surf connut ses premières heures de gloire continentale dans les années 1950, sur la côte californienne, où il se mua rapidement en un véritable " style de vie " avant d'être admiré puis exporté aux quatre coins du globe. Le photographe sportif LeRoy Grannis fut l'un des principaux témoins et acteurs de cette génération : surfeur depuis 1931, il commença à fixer sur la pellicule le quotidien des surfeurs californiens et hawaïens au début des années 1960. Cette impressionnante collection de photos tirées des archives personnelles de l'auteur nous dévoile toute une palette d'impressions et de souvenirs de ces petits ou grands événements qui ont écrit l'histoire du surf, depuis les premiers ballets élégants des longboarders de San Onofre jusqu'aux prouesses des casse-cou d'Oahu, sur la côte nord d'Hawaï. Tout aussi remarquables sont ses précieux témoignages iconographiques sur la naissance d'un style de vie propre au surf - ici, un stomp improvisé en marge d'une compétition, là un pick-up Chevy bondé de planches sur la Pacific Coast Highway -, incarnations de l'esprit de liberté de cette époque dorée qui s'est achevée avec la révolution du shortboard et la mainmise du vedettariat sur une discipline jusque-là réservée à un cercle de gentlemen.

Imagine surfing a perfect blue wave off a deserted beach of sparkling white sand. This book takes us back to a time when the earliest surfers were busy inventing the first American beach culture. The beautiful and nostalgic photographs that surfer Don James took of himself and his friends from 1936-46 capture the lost Eden of the California surf dream in all its glory and innocence. Over 100 sepia photos.

Biography of the legendary Miki Dora, who learned to surf from his step father, Gard Chapin, at San Onofre Beach in Orange County, California.

When the early European explorers traversed the globe, their journals held numerous accounts of Hawaiians enjoying surfing. Since Europeans of that era were not accustomed to swimming in their own cold waters, it must have seemed like a dream to watch naked native Hawaiians riding the waves of a turbulent sea. Nowhere in the ancient world was surfing as ingrained into the culture as on the islands of Hawai'i. He'e nalu (wave sliding) was the national sport and enjoyed by all. When a swell was up, whole villages were deserted as everyone fled to the beach to test their surfing skills. Legends of famous surf riders were retold in mele (song/chant), and fortunes could be decided on the outcome of a surfing contest. From these shores, modern surfing was born, along with the iconic romantic images of bronzed surfers, grass shacks, and hula.

San Onofre: Memories of a Legendary Surfing Beach is a landmark achievement in the study of surfing history and culture from its origins in Polynesia, Peru, and Africa, to the role that San Onofre played in molding California surf culture.San Onofre is the story of the California surfing culture as seen through the eyes of the surfers at San Onofre Surf Beach. Pioneer surfers tell their own story of the Golden Age of Surfing and illustrate their tales with never-before-seen vintage photographs from their own family albums. Their stories offer a priceless collection of primary source data for future studies of the sport.

"An indepth collection of the work of one of surfing's primary photographers, recording a foundational state in the evolution of the sport of surfing."

In an art form defined by innovative design, superb craftsmanship, and mindboggling attention to detail, Harbour Surfboards has earned a reputation for hand-fabricating breathtakingly elegant surfboards. In 1959, Rich Harbour went into his parents' garage with a saw and a piece of foam and came out with a surfboard. Since that first board, Harbour has crafted more than 23,000 surfboards. Today, vintage Harbour Surfboards are collected by enthusiasts around the world eager to score a piece of surfing history. After more than fifty years, Harbour Surfboards is the world's oldest surfboard manufacturing shop, and is still a vital, driving force within the surfing industry. Harbour Chronicles A Life in Surfboard Culture highlights the photography, surfboards and life stories of Rich Harbour. Featuring 21 written contributions by fellow surfers, Harbour Chronicles is 144 pages of surf culture at its best.